Gerudesses in Termina
by AharonYoseph67
Summary: Termina is in trouble again, though Link, Zelda, and Kasuto are hardly equipped to handle a furious Lulu, the mysterious Deku Scrub, the enigmatic messengers of the Giants... and the re-appearance of Navi.
1. Chapter 1

AUTHOR'S NOTE: The following work is ACTUALLY very much in-progress. I thought it would be interesting to release it in a sort of serial format, as I'm writing, and see how things go.

* * *

What day was it? What year? What temporal plane had he come onto this time? Link shook his head, then remembered, shaking with rage... the Triforce of Courage. It was his. He licked himself angrily, his black tongue sliding over his body like oil. He shook his head. Water. Why was there water?

Then more came back. More Links. Link, Link, why, why, why, it was wrong, _he _was Link, he was the only true Link, ever, ever, ever, ever.

"EVER EVER EVER," he shrieked, and the words bounced off the walls. Walls? He lay in a pool of water. Ankle-deep. He was outside, wasn't he? Fog obscured his vision. A tiny island, a lone tree in the center. He blinked, cleared his head, and the fog cleared, and the wasteland he was in was a room. Nothing but a room.

Hissing, he stomped over to the door, which slid up like butter. A blue spider immediately hurled itself at him, but Link shrieked and swallowed the spider whole.

"Destroy _him_," Link shrieked. "All _him_."

And he went.

**_

* * *

_**

**_19 Nayru's Moon, 3712_**

Din reddened. Link watched her, silently. The shadows lengthened. Kasuto didn't anything either.

It had been possibly a moon since they'd left Hyrule. And left Hyrule they most definitely had, finally coming out of the Lost Woods in a blast of glorious Dinlight, the land growing with strange vegetables and animals, most of which Link had never seen before. Kasuto had been less surprised; he, after all, was the more world-weary. Apparently they were in the land of Torasc. Now, however, Kasuto lay on Link's chest, also watching the sun.

"What are you thinking?" Kasuto's voice reached Link's ears, and his eyes landed on his white-haired lover. Link smiled ever so slightly.

"Absolutely nothing."

Kasuto looked down and didn't say anything, his chin on Link's chest. "I can't believe we're doing this."

Link laughed. "What's so hard to believe?"

"I don't know. It's just... kind of amazing. We have no obligations, to anybody. We've been traveling for almost... how long?"

"A month, almost. See the moon? It was full when we left. It's full now." Link was right; the moon had risen already.

"I feel absolutely marvelous, Link." Kasuto's eyes sparkled. "There is nobody, nobody, except for you." They kissed.

* * *

Anju had lost track of the days. Sedgwick pulled on her dress.

"_Mommy_, I have to _pee_!" he shrieked.

"Darling, please hush, can't you see I'm cooking dinner?" she said, rushing over to the table. The broccoli was burning. Of course.

"But I wanna pee NOW!"

"Why don't you ask your father?" she snapped.

"Daddy's not here," Sedgwick moaned.

"Darling, baby, sweetie, I have to cook dinner for twenty people right now, all right? So please, hold it!"

Sedgwick burst into tears. Anju chose to ignore it. Her mind wasn't even on the broccoli anymore. Where the hell was Kafei?

"Mommy, Ellis kicked me!" Wonderful. The twins were home.

"Ellis, don't kick your sister," Anju mumbled.

"She started it!" Ellis whined back.

Anju had had enough. "For goodness sake, children, everybody OUT of the kitchen! Go play with Grandma! Go! Shoo! Get out!"

Sedgwick, Ellis, and Dinshava stared at her. They didn't leave. Anju sighed and continued cooking.

This inn was going to be the death of her.

* * *

"_we don't know._"

"_We do know._"

"BUT WHEN IS HE COMING?"

"lots are coming. More, lots."

"BUT WHEN?"

"it doesn't matter when. It matters that more are coming."

"_He's changed."_

_ "of course he's changed. Eight years have passed_."

"_No one else belongs here. Only him. The others will disrupt the balance_."

"NOT IF ENOUGH COME."

**

* * *

**

"Oh, Din." Zelda stood. Her head hurt. Very badly. She looked up. She was used to falls, but not like this. There was no way she'd be able to get back up now. At least, not without some help. She looked down and inspected the strange plant she was sitting on. It was a giant, pink, flower. She sighed and looked around. The cave she'd fallen into was quite small. It was like some sort of well, or basin.

There was a door across from her little island.

Zelda shrugged, walked across the water (she could do that), and opened it. A hallway. She walked through it and emerged into a vast cavern. She almost gulped. Another pink flower lay in front of her, almost inviting her to do... _something_ with it. She looked around and saw an exit in the upper right hand area of the cavern. She muttered a short spell, wrapping her arms around her, and reappeared next to the exit.

She stopped, staring at a small tree that stood there. Or whatever it was. The knots in it formed a face, almost, one intensely sad, and, somehow, horrifying. Zelda shivered, put a hand on it, and gasped.

It was alive. Still, barely, but alive.

"Good Farore," she breathed. "Gods, let the evil be gone from this tree."

Nothing happened.

"_Gods_," she snapped, and she felt the tree warm beneath her hand. Before she knew it, there was a tiny Deku Scrub boy there, curled up like some sort of shrimp, shivering. Shaking, Zelda bent down.

"Darling," she whispered.

The Deku Scrub didn't respond.

"Sweetheart, it's all right. Everything's all right. Come here, my darling," Zelda said, surprised that such syrupy words were coming out of her mouth. The Deku Scrub looked up now. Its eyes were almost exactly those of the tree, but bright red, amber almost. It was adorable, and yet the eyes held a pain no child's should have held. How long had he been in there? Zelda realized, watching the Scrub, that he reminded her of Link.

"Do you remember anything?" said Zelda. "Where are we?"

The Deku Scrub didn't say anything, but blinked.

"Can you talk?" said Zelda.

The Deku Scrub blinked. "Yes," it honked finally.

Zelda smiled. "Well, what's your name, darling?"

"No name to human!" the Deku Scrub squeaked.

Zelda frowned. "First of all, I'm not a human, I'm a Hylian. Second of all, I'd like to help you."

The Deku Scrub stared at her. "Help?"

"Yes, help. Do you know what that is?"

"I know what help is," said the Scrub, looking scandalized.

"Well, I'm lost, just like you. My name is Quee--Princess Zelda. Nohansen Hyrule. I'm lost, too."

The Deku Scrub's eyes widened. "You're a princess?"

Zelda nodded, smiling.

"Did you save me?"

Zelda nodded.

The Deku Scrub suddenly started shaking violently. Zelda, alarmed, grabbed onto it, lest it should fall into the depths below. He fell into her, emitting sounds she could only take as bawling.

It really was a child.

"But I need someone to protect me," said the Deku Scrub, when it was done crying, looking up at Zelda.

"I'll protect you," said Zelda, wondering why she was doing this. "I promise." Promise? Promise? She had to get back home! HOME! She had an entire country wondering where the hell she was!

"But... you're a princess. But," said the Deku Scrub, answering his own question. "You have magic that saved me. So you must be brave. And strong."

Zelda could only nod.

"Can we go now?"

"Where?"

"There," the Deku Scrub said, pointing to the exit.

_Duh_. "Then where?"

"You'll see. I'll tell you."

"Do you have a name now?" said Zelda. "Unless you want me to call you Deku Scrub?"

"Ki," said the Deku Scrub, slipping its little wooden hand into hers. Zelda smiled and the two walked out of the cavern.

* * *

"Wait." Kasuto pulled on Arion's reins slightly, slowing her to a stop. He jumped off the mare and bent down to the ground.

"What is it?"

Kasuto took off a glove and felt the ground. "They were here."

"Does that mean they're close by?" Link had gotten off his horse.

"Yeah." Kasuto didn't know why he wasn't grinning wildly. All he'd wanted for the past year was to see them again. "Close by. We're catching up."

"What is that?"

"It's a Renlforge," Kasuto said, his hand still on it. He was staring into space. "It's, um, our sign. Sign of the Gerudo."

Link peered at it. "A Renlforge?"

"There's an old Gerudo story, this spirit, god, whatever, created the world. When the world was created, it was really hot, burning, seething. And something was forged in it, something that contained all human joy and love, and creation and hope and so on. But it also contained things like death, greed, hate, misery, envy. It was broken open, and the Earth calmed, but only physically. The spirit's name was Renl."

"Like your name," said Link. "Demrenl."

"From Renl."

"What does Kasuto mean?"

Kasuto grinned at Link, despite himself. "Fierce prince."

Link smiled at him, and Kasuto looked away.

"I don't know what my name means," Link offered behind him.

"Sounds pretty obvious," said Kasuto, getting up and dusting himself off. "Link? A link, a bridge, a connection. What's the rest of your name, anyway?"

"That's it. Just Link."

"You have to have a second name."

"Well... I mean, there's Hero. Hero of Time." He frowned. "Boy without a fairy. I've been referred to as Link of the Kokiri."

Kasuto said nothing. Then, all of a sudden, his face opened up and he started to cry, completely unprepared.

"Kasuto!" Kasuto felt Link envelop him, but he pushed him away and walked off a bit. He didn't say anything.

"Sorry. Sorry. I... sorry."

"Kasuto, what's wrong?"

"I'm scared," he said bluntly.

"What could you possibly be scared of?"

Kasuto turned to look at him. "Me. You. My family. My family." Kasuto spat it out. "They hate me. I don't belong anywhere."

"Neither do I," said Link.

"But I want to, Link. I want to. I want to have a point, a reason. I don't want to go hoe, not even to say goodbye. It's too much. Way too much. Andrew and Yasha, I love them, don't et me wrong, I do, but they don't get me. They don't. How could they?"

"I get you," said Link.

Kasuto stared at him. "No, you don't," he said. He climbed up onto Arion and they clip-clopped away without a word.

* * *

"Oh, Din," Zelda breathed. There they were, smack dab in the middle of the marketplace of a bustling town. And yet it all looked somehow familiar. "Ki, where are we?"

"Clock Town," said Ki, gazing sadly into space. Zelda turned around and craned her neck upwards. The building they'd emerged from towered up, not to the heavens, but high enough. A huge, ticking, clock adorned the front. Zelda could only stare.

"Let's go," Ki said, tugging on her hand. Zelda pulled it away, irritated.

"Don't rush me. I need to get oriented. Where's the castle?"

Ki blinked. "Castle?"

Zelda huffed and grabbed a woman passing by. "You. Where's the castle?"

The woman stared at her, and three brats ran up to her. "Mommy, let's GO! Come on!"

"Quiet," the woman snapped. She turned her gaze back to Zelda. "I beg your pardon." She looked back at Zelda, obviously staring. "You said you were looking for... a castle?"

"Yes, that's right," Zelda said, pulling herself up to her full height. "I am Pr--Queen, the Queen Zelda of Hyrule, and I dem--request to see the leader of this realm."

A crowd had gathered, and the woman blushed. "Leave me alone." And she rushed off with her brats, leaving Zelda to the mercy of the crowd.

At least she wasn't wearing her royal dress.

She tried again.

"I am the Queen of Hyrule! Who will direct me to the castle!"

The crowd said nothing, then burst out into wild laughter. Zelda flushed crimson.

"I'll direct you to my castle!" a man hooted.

"Go suck off a pig, lunatic!" someone else yelled.

Zelda shuddered. She had had her share of crowds after her father's funeral. "Fine," she muttered. She grabbed Ki's hand, cursing herself for being an idiot. The crowd jumped back, still hooting, forming a visible radius around Zelda as she moved through. Thank Din they didn't follow her.

"I don't understand, Ki. Is there no castle around here?"

Ki was dumb.

"Lady! Hey, lady!" Zelda spun around angrily. But she softened when she saw the girl looked positively harmless. She blinked down at her, who was quite homely, with long greasy brown hair, freckles, a big nose. She looked around fourteen.

"Yes?"

"Are you... are you really a Queen?" the girl said, staring at her.

"Yes! Thank you, _Din_!" Zelda smiled wildly down at the girl. "Is there a castle around here, my dear?" She was horrified at the response when the girl shuddered.

"Castle? No castle, castle, castle's gone, never, dead, oh it's dead, but you're okay, you're a Queen, not a King you're alive and pretty, pretty. I'm Pamela, Pamela, what's your name?"

Ki was squeezing Zelda's legs so hard she thought they would pop. Zelda grimaced and looked at her concernedly befrore shaking her outstretched hand. "Zelda."

Pamela shuddered again. "I'm sorry, Zelda, I just get all..." She shivered. "Don't talk about it. Don't."

Zelda frowned. "Maybe you shouldn't be helping me, then."

"No, it's okay," said Pamela. "You can talk to my father."

Zelda looked at her for a minute, and then remembered herself. She smiled, like a queen should. "Thank you, Pamela."

* * *

"Tael. Tael! Where are you?" She was shrieking now. Tatl though she might blow a blood vessel. _Where was he?_ "Mother is going to _kill you_!"

Not in the freischia plants. Not in the mirror room. Not _anywhere_. She shrieked again. "TAEL!"

Tael whizzed out of one of the rooms and clapped his hands over Tatl's mouth before Tatl could yell at him. "Shh, sis! Jeez!"

Tatl scowled. "_What_?"

"Jeez, sis, don't act like such a stereotype!"

"I am NOT a stereotype!" Well, maybe she was a temperamental, flaky, spoiled fairy stereotype, but so what?

"Tatl--" Tael lowered his forehead. "I'm going to show you something, but you can't tell _anyone_ about her."

"Her? HER?"

"Tatl!"

Tatl scowled. "Fine."

The fairies' mansion--not that the Faeries of Morovian Bush were rich; mansions were simply the names of the houses in which fairies lived--had been hollowed out of a rotten tree trunk, strung with curtains of spiderwebs. Now Tael slipped past one of the spiderweb curtains into Tael's room.

"Turn down your light. She's sensitive."

Tatl tried, though it kept flickering because she was actually rather curious.

There, on the bed, lay the most beautiful fairy Tatl had ever seen. Her eyelids were dusted with a fine layer of natural fairy dust. Her skin was unusually pale, even for a fairy, almost like pure limestone. Strands of long, thick blue hair fell down her back; her wings were folded under her, and she gave off no light; she was unconscious. Tatl looked closer.

"Her wings are broken!"

"Shhh," Tael said, softer this time. "I know. I found her in the mountains."

"The _mountains?_"

"She would have drowned, I think, if I hadn't saved her."

Tatl looked at her brother, who was looking down at the blue-haired fairy with a strange expression on his face. If she didn't know better, she would say he was falling in love with her. Except that Tael liked boys. Tatl frowned.

So did she.

* * *

"We'll make a deal, then? The mask for the boys?"

"I... I guess. Yes. I'll get them for you."

"You're sure?" The man giggled, making Holland's skin creep. It seemed to echo. "These masks... they're not normal masks. They have... powers."

"I'll manage."

"Very well." The man grinned now. His eyes were unusually narrow; he didn't look local. "I will see you in a week."

* * *

"Oh, he's gotten so _big_!" Aroma picked up Sedgewick with such ease Anju started. "You're not feeding him enough."

"I feed him plenty," Anju said testily. "And I don't think he likes that, Aroma." Sedgewick was screaming.

"Don't be ridiculous, he likes it plenty. You love your old Grandmama, don't you, Reggie!"

"DON'T--CALL--ME--REGGIE!" Sedgewick managed to shriek.

Anju didn't point out the fact that Sedgewick was seven and that Aroma was treating him like an eight-month-old.

"Oh, right, what's all this Sedgwick business about?"

Anju sighed. "I told you, he's crazy about the Brookwyne Chronicles. He insists we call him Sedgewick."

"Yes, you _told_ me that. Now I'm asking you what it's really about."

"Aroma--"

"It's the truth!" Anju practically screamed.

"No five-year old in the history of the world has read the Brookwyn Chronicles, much less even been _interested_ in them."

"I know, Aroma."

"So--"

"Drop it, Aroma," Anju snapped. "The bottom line is, he wants to be called Sedgewick."

Aroma lifted her eyes as if impressed, but said nothing. Sedgewick had stopped screaming.

* * *

Zelda could only stare.

"Is it that far?" said Pamela's father, whose name was Sam.

"Well... you might say so," said Zelda, choosing her words carefully. She didn't know how wise it was relay the true nature of Hyrule and Termina to perfect strangers. Link knew, and probably the Sages.

_And Kasuto as well,_ she thought darkly, and somewhat bitterly. She'd never been completely all right with the two of them, even with the Goddesses' blessing.

"A friend of mine passed through here, a short time ago," she continued. "I doubt you'd know him."

"How long ago?" said Pamela. Her voice was extremely nasal, and the girl sounded positively slow.

"Oh... maybe not that recently. Seven, eight years ago."

Pamela suddenly shuddered, and Sam looked serious. "Not... not around the time of the Moon?"

"The Moon?" For a moment Zelda was nonplussed. Then she recalled. "Oh, yes, I suppose. He--well, his name was Link."

Pamela gasped. "You _knew_ him?"

"I did," said Zelda, already worried she might be giving too much away.

"Where in the world did he run off to?" Sam said immediately. "Kings, we never got a chance to thank him, he rushed off so quickly."

"People said he actually stopped the Moon from falling," Pamela said quietly.

"Pamela, be rational," Sam snapped. "How in the world could he have done that?"

Pamela cast her eyes to the ground.

Zelda said nothing, and decided to change the subject. "He is quite a do-gooder. In my opinion, he's a tad too full of himself. Always going out of his way for other people, good gracious, it's like he doesn't have anything better to do. Anyway, I thank you sincerely for your hospitality this evening. If you don't mind terribly, I think I'll retire."

Zelda traipsed upstairs tiredly but happily, satisfied with her decision not to go blasting her royalty all over the place, completely forgetful of the fact that she had never been invited to stay the night.

Ki followed.

* * *

"I hope you know where we are," said Kasuto.

"Hopes dashed," said Link. "But isn't it romantic?" He smirked, but Kasuto stared ahead stonily. The plains had turned into dense forest some time back, and the night coming on hadn't helped things. "We should stop for the night."

"No. I want to keep going," Kasuto said simply. Link wished he could see his face, though he knew if he could, he had the feeling his jaw was set, his eyes staring straight ahead, very unsuccessfully concealing something.

"_Kasuto_."

Kasuto stopped.

"Please talk to me."

"I..."

Link waited.

"You know what's going on. Basically. I really just need to clear my head. Take a walk."

"It's too dark. You'll get lost."

"I'm not your wife!" Kasuto snarled.

Link stared at him. It was too dark to see Kasuto's expression exactly, but he seemed to have regretted his words.

"I'm sorry, I didn't--"

Link turned. "Just don't talk to me."

He had Epona trot some ten feet away, climbed down, and set up his sleeping bag.


	2. Chapter 2

20 Nayru's Moon, 3712

"_It is almost time_."

"ALMOST. ALMOST. HE IS COMING."

"they are coming."

"_that's what you've been saying._"

"WE NEED THEM THIS TIME. HE IS RETURNING."

"who is returning?"

"_Everybody_."

* * *

Anju sighed and bit into her apple. The moon was strangely large tonight. She laughed a little to herself. She should be thankful it wasn't as large as it could be.

The world was quiet. Anju closed her eyes and heard a soft wind blowing. She sat on the edge of the cliffs outside the town. The night was full, the plains empty. She breathed. There were flowers, grass, a tree here and there. Anju squeezed the grass. Her heart felt soft.

"How are you feeling tonight?"

Anju breathed and opened her eyes again. "Scared."

Reuven nodded. "Why?"

Anju took a deep breath and let it out. "I'm scared about the future. I don't think Kafei likes me. Or trusts me. I don't trust him. I... the kids are stressful. Kafei's mother is a bitch. A. Bitch. I'm sorry, but she is. I don't know who I am anymore. I'm waiting around for him, and I don't know why. I'm taking care of the kids, and I don't know why. I run the inn, and I don't know why. I do everything, and I don't know why."

Reuven held her close. "Maybe you're just going through a rough patch."

"Maybe. I've... been feeling like this for awhile, though. I... is it bad to feel this way? I feel ungrateful. Isn't a mother supposed to love her kids?"

Reuven didn't say anything.

"Can you say something?"

"Are you sure you don't love them? What would you do if they got the flu?"

"Take care of them. I have to."

"But would you want to?"

Anju paused. "I don't know."

"Sorry. I'm not trying to push you."

"It's okay."

"We don't have to do anything tonight if you don't want to," said Reuven.

Anju started to cry. "This is terrible, what if Kafei sees me--"

"Kafei can go to hell--" said Reuven.

Anju looked at him. "Wow, Reuven."

"I'm serious," said Reuven angrily. "You shouldn't feel bad about this."

"I'm trying not to," said Anju. "I really am."

Reuven kissed her. Anju stared at him for a second. "When were you born again?"

"I'm 23," he said, after a pause.

Anju closed her eyes. All she felt was Reuven's warm chest. All she should feel.

* * *

Kasuto did not sleep. He lay awake--or so he felt--all night, his eyes staring up into the darkness. They eventually adjusted somewhat, and he fell into a sort of fitful half-sleep, his mind awake and furious, moaning at times. The spider was gigantic, he had to get it, it was imperative that he get it--and even worse, Lord Frenchmere and Lord Aginson were in cahoots with the witches of Asuto, whose son was sinfully bedding the Princess of Azalea. Eventually, he was aware of the sun, and himself, and the knowledge that Link hadn't come to wake him up at all during the night. Or if he did, he didn't remember it.

Kasuto felt filthy and terrible; his face felt ripe for squeezing up into a nice batch of tears, but he refused himself to do so. Morning had broken. New day. There was no reason why it should feel like the previous one.

He sat up and stretched. The forest was already fantastically alive, which already lifted Kasuto's spirits. Woodpeckers, sparrows, canaries, mockingbirds, crows, all were twittering and screaming and knocking and bripping, almost deafeningly. The foliage was thick, but occasional, blazingly-hot Dinbeams managed to break through. But neither Link, Epona, or anything else was anywhere to be found.

He treaded carefully. After a few moments, he called out Link's name. He swallowed, his day already marred, and tired from such change in emotions within only a few moments. Had he upset Link that much? He... was tired. Had been tired. Nothing new had changed.

Yet it had. He knew that the trip, the search had brought out something nasty in Kasuto, something to the forefront of their relationship. He couldn't quite say what it was, exactly. Unfortunately, however (or maybe fortunately), Kasuto wasn't one to think about things all that long. He set out in search of Link.

* * *

"Reuven!" Mrs. Snowbon beamed. "Good morning, my darling. Will it be the usual?"

Reuven, on his way to work, smiled cordially. "I think I'll actually try something different today, Mrs. Snowbon."

Mrs. Snowbon was a fat, pearly-white widow who, as Reuven's friends were constantly telling him, was absolutely wild about him. Great for Reuven. Never any beautiful-beyond-belief girls, but fat widows. Not that he didn't like Mrs. Snowbon--but he ached for someone else in Clock Town to notice him. He wasn't ugly. Sure, he was no Marlowe Lucking, but--

His tongue got caught somewhere between his stomach and his throat.

There, looking around in the entrance of Clock Town, was the most breathtakingly beautiful girl Reuven had ever seen. She didn't--superficially, at least--look any different than the popular girls at high school. She had huge brown eyes and a fine heap of nicely washed hair the same color. She stood, holding nothing, wearing a white sunflowered dress quite nicely.

"Oh, darling," said Mrs. Snowbon. "Ignore her. She looks mean, that one."

"She... doesn't," Reuven said quietly, surprising himself. She really didn't. She looked like she didn't belong in that beautiful body. She looked lonely, intelligent, and insecure. Maybe one could seem that way and still be that beautiful, but this girl nevertheless worked as hard--and successfully--as the vain rich girls did.

"Go. Go to Mr. Saffron," Mrs. Snowbon snapped, shoving him a brown bag. Reuven slowly took it, not looking at it, and walked away, his eyes still on the girl, thinking, and wondering.

* * *

"You look familiar."

Link stared at the young man behind the counter. He didn't seem to scream at Link's appearance, as most people did. "I do?" He said.

The young man flinched, but kept his eyes on Link. "You..." he ran his eyes up and down Link, who couldn't read the expression that followed. "I remember you. You."

Link didn't know what to say. "I don't," he said, not exactly interested. Then he realized. This man knew where to find Him.

"Do you know where he is?" Link snarled.

The young man looked confused. "Where who is?"

Link had gotten relatively skilled at maintaining a human facade, but now his anger overwhelmed him, as it did. "Where _he_ is!" He screamed, and he felt his tongue lengthen and hiss, and his features darken and the world grow red. "Where is _he_?"

The shop was empty that day, and there was only the young man there. All the light seemed to exit the room as Link grew, giggling and laughing. Words couldn't describe the glee he felt, nor could they describe this rage, this wild, unfurled rage. Mouths opened up into mouths, saliva lacerated the air. Arms grow from arms. Black covered black. And Link laughed. The young man screamed, but the screams were carried off, away into the darkness.

**

* * *

**

There was a castle. Different castle. Strange. Large. Unreal. Underwater. Preserved. A tiny him. Puppet, really. Sword. The him was a marionette, a child. Hands controlling it.

_You have no will_.

Link shot up, sweating. The world slowly focused in. He blinked. "Kasuto?" He stood up. Bright Nayrubeams spotted the ground through the trees. Something clicked in his mind. Something about this forest was too familiar.

* * *

Zelda woke, gasping. She looked around, her eyes wide, it was coming, it was going to—

Dinlight. Birdchirp. Reality came back to her. No monsters. No demons. Not lately, anyway, she thought darkly. She swallowed, running a hand through her hair, and grimaced—her hair was rough and grimy. She looked around—Ki was curled up under a small grey and red quilt in the corner, and Pamela and her father slept in separate beds close by. She'd gotten used to living like a peasant—though she would never have used the word in front of them. She sensed that they didn't think of themselves as such—in Hyrule, peasants know their place. The walls were covered with brown and green and who knows what, the water pumped from a well well outside the town, the room was dark with no fireplace to speak of, and when Din set, so did the family.

"Ki," she whispered.

"_Ni. Ni. Ni._" A voice suddenly said, and Zelda jumped.

"Who's there?" she said loudly. Pamela shot up. Sam mumbled.

Zelda waited again for the voice, but it didn't come.

"Zelda?" said Pamela, in her low nasal. "Are you okay?"

"The voice, didn't you hear the voice?" Zelda demanded.

Pamela stared at her. "No," she said quietly.

Zelda glared at her and listened again, but the voice was gone. Then she realized that Ki hadn't woken up.

"Ki?" she said again, but Ki didn't move. She pulled the scratchy brown sheet off of her and marched over to Ki's bed.

He wasn't there. What she'd thought was Ki was merely the lump of quilt.

"Where'd he go?" said Pamela.

"I don't know," said Zelda. "Pamela, it was wonderful meeting you, but I really ought to get going."

"Where are you going?"

Zelda felt like glaring again at the girl, but she decided not to. "Home."

"Oh," said Pamela. "Okay. Bye." She lay back down again, but she didn't close her eyes. "What about Ki?"

"What about him? I have to get home."

Pamela just looked at her and said nothing else.

She _did_ have to go home.

* * *

"Hello?"

A voice answered him back. "Hello?"

The forest had turned even darker than before. Kasuto swallowed, then berated himself. He had no reason to be afraid of the darkness. He took a step, then yelped. A flame suddenly stood between him and a Goron girl, probably around sixteen years old, with curly brown hair and sapphire eyes.

"Who are you?" they said at the same time. The flame was in the Goron girl's hand, and Kasuto had pulled out a shuriken. "Who are _you_?" they said again.

Kasuto licked his lips.

"I'm Regina," rasped the girl.

"Kasuto."

Neither lowered their weapons.

"Give me a single reason why I should trust you," Regina said.

"I can't," said Kasuto. "Can you?"

"No."

Kasuto hesitated, then lowered his shuriken. After another moment, Regina did as well.

"I don't trust humans," she said at last.

"Then you're in luck. I'm not a human."

Regina raised her eyebrow. "Oh, really? What are you, then?"

"A Gerudo."

Regina rolled her eyes. "Oh, please, I've heard that. You're all the same, it's not like you're a different race."

"How come we can reproduce without the opposite sex, then?"

"Good point."

"How about you? What's your story?"

"You never exactly told me your story."

"That's true. Would you like me to?"

"Please."

"I'm lost. I'm looking for my lover. Hylian? Green clothes, green hat? Blond? Sword--"

"Haven't seen him."

Kasuto realized he was having trouble breathing and coughed. "It's getting claustrophobic."

"Giants, I know."

"How about you?"

"Can't say. Top-secret information. Classified."

Kasuto narrowed his eyes at her. "How am I supposed to trust you again?"

Regina shrugged. "Instinct." After seeing Kasuto's face, she sighed. "All right, I'm from Snowhead Mountain. I'll give you that much."

"Fair enough. I--"

"Can't say I've heard of any Hylians, though. What does a Hylian look like?"

"Like a human--"

"Hah!"

"--But with long, pointy ears?"

Regina shook her head. "Nothing comes to mind. So are you from Hylia, that means?"

Kasuto frowned. "I've never heard of such a place. And I've been many places. We come from a land called Hyrule, though."

Regina scratched at something. Maybe a tree; Kasuto couldn't tell. "It sounds familiar."

"This is foolish," said Kasuto. "We're never going to get where we're going in the dark."

"Well said--eh--" Regina looked Kasuto up and down. "You said you're a Gerudo?"

Kasuto turned red. "Yes. My father was."

Regina's eyes sparkled. "Your _father_! So you--"

"Yes, I have a mother," Kasuto snarled. "I'm really not in the mood for this, all right?"

"Sorry," Regina held up her hands. "I was just curious--"

"Yeah, well, everyone's just curious. It's not easy, you know. I may not even be able to have kids, so yeah, it's not easy."

"I'm sorry," said Regina, after a pause. "I am, really."

"Let's just sleep," said Kasuto.

They slept.

* * *

"I don't like this place," Link said, out loud. The woods didn't seem to hear him. It was dark, darker than Kokiri Forest ever seemed, and the green seemed malevolent, darker—though, he thought wryly, he knew Kasuto would scold him for equating malevolence with darkness.

His breaths began to come faster now. He knew—hoped—the place was normal now, but the fact was, the last time he'd been, he'd been under a constant deadline.

A Deadline.

"Hello?" A voice suddenly called out, and Link's sword flipped out of its holster.

"Who's there?" he growled.

"Oh, bless me, bless me!" the voice said, and a withered old lady appeared from behind the bushes. "It's just I, dearie, just I…" her mouth hung open as she stared at Link. "Such a familiar young man."

The old lady was even more wrinkly than the last time he'd seen her—if that was even possible. He thought wryly that she and the Archdeacon Priest would make a good couple—and then remembered that they wouldn't, for many reasons. Her skin seemed to fold infinitely over itself—he couldn't even see the woman's eyes anymore. She had shrunk to half Link's height, though much of it was due to a large hump in her back. Her tiny frame was swathed in velvet and rose, and her lips looked as though there was something hungry inside, devouring.

"Koume," said Link simply, a dull hatred even now welling up inside him.

The witch chuckled—her voice sounded so palpable, like cabbage. "Kotake, dear."

"Which one are you?" said Link.

"I told you, I'm Kotake."

"No, I mean, Hyrule Kotake or Termina Kotake?"

The witch giggled again. "Who knows anymore?"

"Have you seen—a man? Young man? Looks like a Sheikah?"

"You can't hide things from Koume, you know. You're sleeping with him."

Link began to get annoyed. "Have you seen him or not?"

"Dearie, dearie, this old mush does get tired. Come back to the treehouse for some tea?"

"I don't even know why you're even up in that treehouse," he grumbled, following her out of the forest.

* * *

"Gingi, don't forget the thistleweed," Laima tweeted.

"I didn't. It's right here," said Marlowe.

"Good," said Laima. "Get some more."

Grumbling, Marlowe walked away.

Laima smiled. She liked her life, except when she didn't. No matter. Life was life, and it had its ups and downs. A major up being Marlowe…'s body. She knew it wasn't something to brag about, but she had been rather pleased at the matchmaker's decision, and knew all the other girl watched her daily with a raging jealousy.

"That's enough," said Laima—Marlowe had collected another bushelful. She leaned in to kiss him, and he pulled back.

"I'm not ready yet," he said weakly, and walked away.

Laima watched him. He was perfect, absolutely perfect.

* * *

Marlowe's stomach felt cold. Could your stomach sweat? It didn't seem possible. It twisted, just thinking about it. He couldn't breathe, couldn't think. He needed him. He knocked on the wooden door so hard he almost broke his fist.

"You're late," said Kafei. His strange red eyes always looked mean.

"I'm sorry," said Marlowe, bursting into tears. "Laima had me picking thistleweed--"

"Close the door before someone sees you!" Kafei hissed—Marlowe did. The room was small, sparsely furnished, but well hidden.

"I can't take it anymore, Coffee. I can't! I feel like I'm going to torn apart."

"This is reality, Marlowe. These are the facts. There's no use getting upset over it." But the words were said tenderly. Marlowe looked at Coffee, utterly charmed at the state of his shaggy purple hair, but too upset to say anything about it. He needed attention now.

"Shh, baby. Everything's gonna be all right."

"I didn't ask for this. I didn't ask for her. I don't want her."

"She loves you," said Kafei.

"I don't love her."

"It doesn't matter. There has to be some love. You'll make it work. It's working."

"How is this working?"

"It's happening, isn't it?"

Marlowe was always too exhausted to reason with Coffee.

"Let's take these clothes off of you."

He did.

"Now, Marlowe, tell me what's inside," said Coffee.

"No, no, I—" Marlowe sighed horribly and stood up. "I need to be here. I need to look at you. Why—"

"Why what?"

"Why do I feel like you're a cartoon?" Marlowe blurted out. Why on Earth had he said.

"Do cartoons do this?" said Coffee, kissing him sensuously on the lips.

Hot. Wet. Fast. Coffee, with purple hair and scratchy stubble, and imperfect angles, but perfect angles, and perfect touch, and different, and mean, and not cartoon. Not a cartoon.

* * *

She refused to be tortured like some silly little girl. She slammed open the door to the room but was shocked to see the girl standing at the window. Tatl froze. The girl turned around. She was even more beautiful with her eyes open, sharp pricks of blue, poignant and seeing.

"Hello," the girl said.

"Hi," Tatl said, but no said came out.

The girl smiled, though somewhat coldly. "My name is Navi."

_My name is Navi._

_

* * *

_

And, somehow, Link was not surprised when Lulu greeted him as he stepped into the treehouse—how it stayed up at all, he wondered. He was also greeted with a wave of stifling heat—multiple fires were burning, under cauldrons, under bottles of potions, and, most of all, countless sticks of incense and herbs hanging from the ceiling—overall, it made Link immediately dizzy.

Lulu was Ruto in a purple dress. Her light blue head, shaped like a small football, seemed smooth, not shiny, but pretty as Zora heads went, and of course bald. And her eyes were royal velvet, like her dress, and Link remembered how the instant she'd recovered her voice seven years ago, she'd screamed, loud and long.

Now she stared at him—a sort of greeting—as he stepped in.

"Hi," said Link. He didn't know what else to say.

"Hi," said Lulu, still staring at him.

Koume gave him a bowl of some sort of brown stew—it was surprisingly good, after Link brought a tentative spoonful to his lips, and he wolfed it down. After he finished, he noticed that Lulu was kneeling over a figure on a bed, rubbing some sort of oil on its body.

"Do you remember me?" said Link.

"Listen, I really have to concentrate on this," Lulu snapped. "Probably."

Link said nothing.

"Oh, I'm sure you slept together at some point," giggled Koume.

"Well, okay," said Link, standing up. "Thanks for your help, but I—"

A low moaning came from the bed.

"Is--is he awake?" said Link.

Lulu glared at him. "Obviously."

Link breathed and felt stupid. He hated feeling stupid. He should just leave. He had to find Kasuto, and neither of them were being helpful.

"Come here and help, Link," said Koume. "I know you know some magic."

Lulu's head snapped around. "Link?"

Link stared at her. Within a second, a fin-blade was pressed against Link's throat, and he froze. He suddenly realized he'd never been so close to death before.

Koume laughed again. "I knew you'd slept together."

"Show me the mask," Lulu growled.

Suddenly, Link knew.

The cauldron bubbled, and the figure moaned.

"What mask?" said Koume, her voice starting to quiver. "Leave him alone, girl! Help me with this—uh, man!"

"I don't have it with me," Link said. "I wish I did."

"Was it fun?" The Zora snarled. "Stealing him? Pulling me around? Lying to me?"

"No," Link said, snarling right back. "It wasn't fun. It was necessary. You couldn't know. No one could know."

"They why didn't you tell me?"

"How did you even find out?"

"Find out? _Find out_?" Lulu roared. "I'll tell you how I found out! When I saw my lover's bones on the beach! When I asked around! When I found someone who saw some preteen brat playing with a mask and turning into—" she choked. "You stupid filth, asking me how I found out. You're a piece of work."

Before Link could shout out that he had been twelve, for Din's sake, she was gone. He let a deep breath out.

"Well, I won't pry," said Koume. "You seem to like mannish things. Maybe you'll help me out with this one?"

Link stepped over, tentatively, and for the first time, he could see the figure clearly—it was a Zora, a male Zora, a gorgeous, muscular, young Zora, moaning and thrashing.

"I don't know anything about medicine," said Link.

"You'll have to do. Rub this lotion on him."

Link turned red, but then again, it could have been the incense and fires, one of which was burning close to the Zora.

"Get that fire away from him," Link said quickly. Koume grabbed a pot of water and threw it on the fire immediately. "In fact, get him out of here. He needs to be in cool water."

"You won't find any of that around here," said Koume.

Why in the world wouldn't Lulu take him to Great Bay?

"Where did Lulu go?"

Koume shrugged. Link ran to the door. She was nowhere in sight.

"LULU!"

There was nothing excerpt for the squawks and shrieks of the swamp.

Link stepped back in. "I have to take him to Zora's Hall," he said.

"Suit yourself," said Koume. "Though if you want him to continue in this world, I wouldn't recommend it."

"I have a quick way. But I need you to come with me."

Koume's eyes nearly bugged out. "Dear, I'm an old woman, I hardly think—"

"As far as I know," said Link. "There is no one at Zora Hall who knows how to heal like you do. I need you."

Why wasn't he looking for Kasuto?

"My dear, I really am flattered, but I can't possibly—"

"You'll be fine," said Link, springing into action. "I can come back here if we need anything else. You need to come outside with me. And him."

Koume stepped outside and watched, rather interested, as Link heaved the enormous Zora over his shoulder, and shrieked as the owl swooped towards them.


End file.
